Gangsters Loot the Tent

The story begins long before you get to the tent. Check out this teaser for Gangsters of Love playing at Teatro ZinZanni in Seattle through September 30.

It is finally here!  Gangsters of Love opened June 14th to a full house of adoring fans and freshly minted converts. For this spectacular spectacular, the tent sends you back in time to 1932. America is deep in the depression. Bread lines, unemployment and homelessness are rife. Prohibition, which made the sale and distribution of liquor illegal, has been the law of the land for 13 years. Why on earth did we send you back here, you might be asking yourself?

Oh right, because it is also the age of jazz, Art Deco, and glamor! This show has everything, and we mean everything: Three aerial acts, gangsters, tap dancing, King Kong, Chef Caesar, gambling, socks, cement boots, moxie, jazz, Francine Reed, and so much more. Gangsters of Love features comedian Frank Ferrante, aerialist Dreya Weber, blues vocal powerhouse Francine Reed, Duo Madrona (Ben Wendel and Rachel Nehmer) on trapeze, funnyman Joe DePaul, comic acrobat Andrea Conway Doba, vaudevillian Wayne Doba and juggler rola bola extraordinaire Bernard Hazen. This much talent in one tent is probably illegal, so don’t tell the fuzz!

Chef Erik Carlson has simply outdone himself with his newest five-course extravaganza of flavor. Think we are being biased? Check out the menu! Seriously, he is serving Blue Nose Bass en Parchment with lemon, Mascarpone and fresh herbs, served with garlic saffron rice, broccolini almandine and carrots. We dream in cheesecake! You will not be disappointed.

25 Things You Didn’t Know About Joel Salom

Australian juggling sensation, Joel Salom, appears in Hail Caesar!, Teatro ZinZanni’s current production. In the show, he plays Mick, a maitre d’ looking to make a good impression, as well as controlling his satiric creation, Erik the Dog. He excites audiences with his hilarious juggling routines while intriguing them with unique rhythmic juggling acts. Whether you’ve seen him onstage or had him teach you a juggling lesson or two, here are a few things you may not know about Joel:

1.    I would describe myself as a tall, lanky, funny fella who loves his family and is addicted to juggling shaker balls.

2.    I grew up in Western Australia on a dairy farm.

3.    My family is my favorite thing. My six-year-old son is gregarious and charismatic,  my three-month-old daughter is gorgeous and sleeps, and my wife is my everything: down to earth, practical, beautiful and very honest.

4.    The last movie I saw was Winnie the Pooh; my son came along, too.

5.    I think patience is one of my greatest strengths.

6.    I can’t have a pet; I travel too much.

7.    I’m secretly obsessed with plucking nose hairs.

8.    Something crazy I’ve done is supporting my family by being a freelance comedy juggler! Somehow, it seems to be working very well.

9.   My favorite spot in Seattle could be anywhere as long as I am with my daughter.

10. A good day is a beach day.

11. My life philosophies are: “No hurries, no worries”, “Do what you like and do what you’re good at” and “If you’re going through sh*t, just keep going”.

12. My first job was stilt walking in our local shopping center.

13. My hidden talent is flying trapeze.

14. A memorable Teatro ZinZanni moment was when my then three-year old son walked into the tent during the show, without his pants!  I was doing a scene on stage, he’d wet his pants and needed help (My wife was baby-sitting another performer’s baby).  I gestured for him to go back stage. He waved back. Eventually, he got the idea and, with slumped shoulders he walked back stage. His little, naked butt was the last image – hilariously cute.

15. I cannot resist buying licorice.

16. I’d like to visit India.

17. I love Seattle. The people are so friendly and supportive, the city is easy to navigate, and the festivals at Seattle Center are so much fun.

18. The last book I read was Mind Sight.

19. A song I wrote for my daughter is one of my favorite songs.

20. I aspire to be a patient father, supportive husband, and remember how fortunate I am in so many ways.

21. My drink of choice is strong coffee.

22. If I could be any animal, I’d be a dung beetle. I reckon I’m pretty good at pushing sh*t up a hill. I am a juggler…

23. I’m slightly embarrassed to say that I only speak English.

24. My favorite places to travel are Thailand, Vanuatu, Singapore, and Indonesia.

25. I decided on my profession by accident.

Hail Caesar! ends soon, so hurry in to see Joel and the rest of our talented cast!

Juggling Master Class with Joel Salom

We’ve just announced that our ZinZanni Institute for Circus Arts will be holding a juggling master class with Hail Caesar‘s juggling comic Joel Salom. In this class he explores the relationship between music and juggling with this hands-on workshop geared for adult jugglers, serious and otherwise. Experience with juggling three balls is a prerequisite.

• Date: Monday, August 8, 2011, 6:30 P.M.
• Ages: 18+
• Price: $50
• Location: Teatro ZinZanni’s Seattle Spiegeltent, 222 Mercer Street, Seattle, WA 98109
• Reserve your spot here. Capacity: 30.

The video below contains a quick glimpse at some of the techniques Joel will cover in the class.

Clown Crash-Course Final Performance

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What happens when you put 35 kids between the ages of 5 and 8 into a 100 year-old spiegeltent and leave a legendary Quebequois clown in charge? Magic!

Camp ZinZanni, presented by Tree Top, is just hitting the half-way mark for 2010′s summer sessions and we’ve already seen kids clowning, juggling, miming, swinging, singing, balancing, teetering, pratt falling, slapsticking, acting, ribbon dancing, stacking, conjuring and growing. During our second week of Clown Crash-Course we even saw a kid lose his first tooth on stage!

Still want to get in on some circus fun? There are just a couple of remaining spots in our “Objects in Motion + Clowning” workshop which focuses on juggling, object manipulation and sleight-of-hand. The course starts Monday, July 26 and runs through Saturday, July 31. Visit campzinzanni.org for more information and the enrollment form.